Sean Carroll - Why Fine-tuning Seems Designed

If all is random and our universe is the only universe, the chance existence of human awareness would seem incredible. Because the laws of physics would have to be so carefully calibrated to enable stars and planets to form and life to emerge, it would seem to require some kind of design. But there are other explanations.




Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. His research focuses on fundamental physics and cosmology.


Closer to Truth, hosted by Robert Lawrence Kuhn and directed by Peter Getzels, presents the world’s greatest thinkers exploring humanity’s deepest questions. Discover fundamental issues of existence. Engage new and diverse ways of thinking. Appreciate intense debates. Share your own opinions. Seek your own answers.

[PetraKann]

Given enough time and fine tuning, Kuhn will look exactly like Albert Einstein.

[JoseGarcia-dwtt]

Thank you both! For this gift of a conversation to all of us. I watch these with my toddlers.

[Kumurajiva]

sean Carroll is the best, I never get tired of listening to him

[greenspeed]

Mr Carol does a wonderful job here of showing the flaws with the fine-tuning argument. And at the end he does a masterful job of showing how presumptuous we are with the limited knowledge that we have. Very well done.

[rickwyant]

The universe exists, god is not an explanation of it's existence.

[andrewclifton]

I think Carroll Straw-man's what Robert calls the "theistic" view, mocking it as "the universe, is fine-tuned for life so that I can be here". It's easy to see that as ridiculous - but it's a misrepresentation. The suggestion is that the universe is the way it is, so that sentience can exist within a physical environment. To be clear, this isn't necessarily a theistic view (in any conventionally religious way). It's a teleological view, which postulates that consciousness itself is a fundamental feature of reality - and further, that consciousness has influenced the character of physical reality - in the interests of the flourishing of consciousness.

[joegibbskins]

It’s impossible to accurately assess the system from within the system. It looks fine tuned to us, and maybe it is, but of course if it was random (and it appears to be), we would only find ourselves in a place where we can exist. The other thing is even that doesn’t do it justice. That’s just talking about carbon based life forms on earth, then you have to get to us as a species, and then to you as an individual person. The odds seem astronomically against that, but we beat them. Even in an infinite multiverse situation, you are made up of physical materials that only exist right here and right now. It’s fucking nuts. If we were at all rational about it we’d just scream in terror and wonder from birth to death, but luckily we can distract ourselves with our phones I guess

[rjgood]

My own common sense tells me that it's not the universe that is fine tuned but rather mother nature is "fine tuned" to find niches where life can exist. If you go to supremely hostile environments on earth you will find forms of life emerging under ice in the arctic regions or incredibly deep in the ocean or around volcanic vents etc. If those forms of life were sentient they might well believe that the earth is fine tuned for their existence but that is clearly not the case. I would like to believe that the universe was "fine tuned" so I could exist but that seems to me like believing in Santa Claus. Should we believe that a universe, 99.99 percent of which is hostile to life, was "fine tuned" for us?

[hn]

Exactly, given what we have known now, we would not possibly predict life appears and exits on Earth, so why calling our planet and our universe are fined tuning for "life"?

[diffgeo]

2:21 - "It just happens ..." I like that explanation.😉

[tixch]

Very honest interview and shared view points

[tgc]

In other words I’d rather believe in countless universes. life capable of living inside of a 20, 000 degree neuron star before I believe there’s a designer

[FortYeah]

There is a 4th hypothesis : consciousness is at the core of the universe and because it is in its nature to know (itself), it does naturally everything it can to build organic machines that can think and (try to) know themselves.

[dongshengdi]

Existence from value:
A possible connection between consciousness and the mystery of existence lies in the relationship of consciousness with value. Philip Goff (philosopher) is among the recent wave of philosophers defending the fundamentality of consciousness. Goff has also suggested that the animating force of reality may be mysteriously connected to its value.

He reminds us of an insight first made by the philosopher David Hume in the 19th century. Hume observed that we simply do not perceive causes in nature. While we perceive the flow of events. Our apparent perception of causes is an illusion.

Similarly, science does not actually reveal causes in the world. Goff points out that once we truly recognize this, we are Free to consider an alternative possibility, the natural necessity. The animating force of existence is not material or mechanical, but in fact follows from its value.

Goff considers that such a view might also help to explain why against all of the odds, the universe seems finally tuned to allow what he calls, "a universe of great value in which conscious value sensitive beings can evolve."

Among all of the intelligible arrangements of nature's laws, the probability of a life friendly universe is, in fact, trillions to one.

Fine tuning may actually be an indicator of the deeper significance and necessity of consciousness on the metaphysical landscape.
:

[NeverTalkToCops]

Fine tuning does not require a Fine Tuner.

[justinpeterburford]

Design…… impossible. Multiverse…… absolutely. I don’t see any bias 😂

[scienceexplains]

*Texas sharp-shooter fallacy?* 🎯
That may be the wrong name.
The fine-tuning argument for god(s) paints the bullseye over the bullet holes.

Any combination of narrow physical laws will result in some things peculiar to that combination of laws. Just because one set has produced us does not make that set statistically special.

If you shuffle a deck of cards thoroughly and end up with four suits all in order, you have merely shuffled it into one of of the many equally possible arrangements. No one arrangement is more or less likely than any other. The ordered result has meaning to us, just as life does. People may like FT mostly for self-referential reasons. We see ourselves as meaningful and non-us as less so.

[haroonaverroes]

6:00 that proves that they do not understand what they have stolen !

[skinnwalker]

Would it be a wasted life if Robert dies asking the very same questions he was asking on day one of his lifelong quest for the truth?

[MrPlaiedes]

In one universe, Robert grows a turtleneck.